Archive | October, 1997

Maintenance strategies, as I suggested in a previous article, should be developed in three stages: Determine the maintenance requirements of each asset in its operating context Decide what resources are needed to fulfill those requirements Decide what systems are needed to manage the resources. This process was compared to building a house where maintenance requirements […]

Follow Us

Industrial companies are addressing plant capacity improvement in many ways. The cornerstone of these processes is often overall equipment effectiveness, which includes both equipment and process reliability. Several terms are used to describe programs that are structured to improve equipment reliability, including reliability-centered maintenance, reliability-based maintenance, total productive maintenance, and condition-based assessment. The common thread […]

Follow Us

Infrared thermography and waveform analysis identify mechanical failure and highlight increased duty cycle concerns in robotic work cell. Root cause investigation of a single fault on a piece of critical production equipment at Accuride’s Henderson, KY, plant uncovered multiple hidden problems. Solving those problems resulted in increased productivity. The investigation began shortly after an operator […]

Follow Us

Last month when I discussed two massive monuments to a bygone industrial era, the Cornish pumping engine and the Quincy mine steam hoist, I noted that the romantic good old days were not all that good. But people still wish for simpler times when the industrial scene was less complicated. Not so long ago, machinery […]

Follow Us

A modern computerized maintenance management system should have the functionality to support a reliability-centered maintenance effort. Here is how they can work together. Asset optimization at minimum cost is a fundamental principle of modern business management. It translates into getting the maximum uptime and hence the value from any asset or equipment. Most plants have […]